Canine Lactation Disorders
A dog nursing squealing puppies appears to be a normal picture of motherly love. But puppies that continue to vocalize during and after ingesting a meal signify a possible problem with the mother dog's mammary glands and ability to produce milk. Dog owners need to recognize the signs of lactation disorders in their pregnant and nursing dogs so the veterinary treatment necessary for the continued health of the mother and the puppies can be provided.
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Mastitis
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Mastitis, an infection of the mammary glands, develops in lactating dogs when bacteria move from the teat opening up into the gland. Poor hygiene and trauma from nursing puppies may contribute to the mother dog contracting the disease. The dog's mammary glands become painful and inflamed, and a smelly, discolored milk or discharge can be detected. The mother dog may develop a fever and become lethargic, with little to no appetite. If the mastitis is not treated, the glands can be abscessed, and the lack of nutritional colostrum will cause the puppies to become sick or die.
Most dogs will recover if treated with systemic antibiotics, veterinary draining of the glands and applications of warm water compresses to the affected teats.
Eclampsia
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Eclampsia results from the loss of necessary calcium in the mother dog's body during lactation. Animals with particularly large litters are predisposed to this syndrome due to the amount of milk production needed to feed the puppies. Small dogs with more than one or two puppies can also contract the disorder.
Canines with eclampsia, also called puerperal tetany, will experience restlessness, panting and severe muscular spasms, typically two to three weeks after whelping. Because calcium regulates cell function in skeletal and cardiac muscles, the dog's heart rhythms can become irregular and the mother dog may slip into a coma and cardiac arrest. Treatment consists of infusion of intravenous calcium and removing the puppies off the mother as soon as possible.
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Pseudopregnancy
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Pseudopregnancy, also called false or phantom pregnancy, occurs when the female dog develops all the signs of pregnancy without the presence of an embryo. She may show signs of abdominal enlargement and her mammary glands can swell, fill with milk and begin dripping. The dog might exhibit behavioral changes, including nest building, hiding and aggression.
Commonly seen in animals 40 to 60 days after a heat cycle, false pregnancy can lead to pyometra (infection and inflammation of the uterus) if not treated with hormones.
Mammary Cancers
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Mammary tumors, commonly found in older unspayed dogs, can exhibit as small, benign nodules or larger, metastatic growths in the glands. They can be a mix of both benign and metastatic cells. The overgrowth of cancerous cells in the animal's mammaries interferes with the production of colostrum and milk in the pregnant and nursing dog. These cancers grow rapidly and can quickly spread to the animal's lymph nodes and other organs without veterinary treatment.
An intact female dog appears to contract mammary neoplasia (cancer) due to the increase of estrogen released during numerous estrous (heat) cycles, according to Dr. Allison McCarthy, Dr. Perry Bain and Dr. Kenneth Latimer of the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia. In their article "Canine Mammary Cancer," the doctors state that the risk of developing mammary gland tumors is 0.05 percent if the dog is spayed prior to the first estrous cycle.
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